New World
by pain10
Summary: after training for years luffy nd zoro finally departs to spread their name across the world, but when they arrive at the capital city 'raftel' something unexpected happens AU
1. chapter 1

**NOT:** hello guys this is an edited version of the story hope you love it . nd i want to thank **Gina Tsukiko** for helping me in editing it coz english is not my first language. nd i really hate writing so i don't want to take too much time focusing on writing mistakes.

chapter 1

New World—East Region: Fuusha Village

The people of Fuusha Village are happily going about their daily lives. In the forest to the north of the village two men are fighting. One of them has black hair, black eyes, a scar under his left eye. He is wearing a red vest, blue jeans like shorts, and sandals with a straw hat on his head. He is using his bare hands to fight while the other one has green hair, is wearing a plain white shirt and black pants, and has three swords to fight. After a long fight they stopped fighting.

"You are good, Zoro." The black haired one said, breathing heavily.

"You are not bad yourself, Luffy." Zoro said, also breathing heavily.

"So is it time?" Luffy asked.

"Yeah, it is."

Luffy stood up and shouted, "World here we come!"

"Keep it down Luffy, it's not like the world's gonna hear you." Zoro said

"Yeah I know, but I'm just saying…"

Zoro stood up. "Let's go, Luffy." He started walking away.

"Yeah. Coming!" Luffy said and followed him.

After walking for a while they ended up in the same place they had left earlier.

"Isn't this the place we were training in?" Luffy asked, looking around.

"No, why would you say that?" Zoro said.

"But this is where we always train." Luffy walked past Zoro, heading in a new direction. "Follow me!" Zoro whined, saying he wasn't lost, but followed Luffy anyway.

After a short time they reached the village and went to the party bar. Upon entering, Luffy shouted, "Makino, food!"

"Coming right now!" Makino shouted back. Then she went and brought some food for Luffy and some booze for Zoro.

"Thanks, Makino." Luffy said and started eating.

"Thanks." Zoro said, drinking his booze.

"Whee woul liib tomowo mowing." Luffy said with a full mouth, spitting some on Zoro.

"Don't speak when you are eating, damn it!" Zoro shouted.

"Here, clean yourself up." Makino said, giving him clean clothing.

"Thanks." Zoro said while wiping the food off himself. "Yeah, we will leave tomorrow morning so be ready, and don't oversleep."

"I won't!" Luffy exclaimed, slapping his hand on the table for more food.

Makino brought him more food and said, "So you guys gonna leave tomorrow, hah?"

"Yeah, we decided this today." Zoro said.

"You guys should be careful. I've heard rumors about bandits terrorizing the travelers in the area." Makino said.

"Don't worry, if they show up we will just kick their ass. Right, Zoro?" Luffy said excitedly.

"Yeah. I'm looking forward to it." Zoro said.

"Okay, good luck, then." Makino smiled at them indulgently.

Zoro stood. "Well, I'm going, then. See you tomorrow morning, Luffy." Zoro walked out of the bar.

"See ya!" Luffy replied, still eating.

Early the next morning, the people of Fuusha Village were waking up to start their daily routine. Luffy woke up and rubbed his eyes. Sitting in bed, he gazed at his hat and smiled.

"Today is the day."

Then he walked downstairs. Makino saw him and smiled.

"Good morning, Luffy." Luffy grinned back at her.

"Good morning, Makino!" Then sat down at a table. Makino placed some food in front of him. Luffy thanked her and started eating his breakfast.

After eating Luffy packed his things, said goodbye to Makino, and headed out. While walking through the village, Luffy looked at the people's houses for the last time.

When he reached the edge of the village he saw Zoro there, already waiting for him.

"Yo, Zoro! Been waiting long?"

"Nah, just got here."

"Then shall we go?"

"Yeah."

And thus they headed out on their journey to get to the capital to join the army to spread their names throughout the nation as great warriors.

New World Kingdom—Capital City: Raftil

Early morning in the Castle, a beautiful orange-haired, brown-eyed girl woke up.

"Good morning, Princess." A black-haired girl said.

"Good morning, Robin. And please, call me Nami."

"Sorry, Princess, but it's hard for me to say your name." Robin apologized while helping Nami get dressed.

"Hey, Robin, I wanna go outside today."

"But Princess, it's dangerous! What if someone recognizes you?" Robin said and brushed her hair.

Nami moved away from the mirror to the window to look outside over the city. "I wanna see my people; walk among them and understand them better…"

"I'm sure they are happy to have a princess like you."

"You think so?"

"I'm sure, Princess."

It'd been two days since Luffy and Zoro had left Fuusha Village and now they are walking through a thick forest. Suddenly three men jumped out of the brush, each holding a sword

"Stop right there!" One of the men said.

"Give us all your money and belongings, or you die!" Another man said.

"And don't try anything funny! It won't work on us cuz we are part of The Buggy Bandits!" The third man said.

Luffy tilted his head in confusion. "Buggy?"

"Yes! Buggy the Clown!" The first man said.

"Do you now this 'Buggy' guy, Zoro?"

"Nah, never heard of him."

"Whaaaat?!" The three men exclaimed in unison.

"Then we will show you the power of The Buggy Bandits!" Another man said then all three attacked at once.

In mere seconds they were all cut down.

"Hey Zoro, that's not fair! I wanted to have fun too!" Luffy whined.

"Too bad they were too weak to stand against my three-sword style." Zoro said, putting his swords away.

After that they continued walking on their way, talking about what had happened and laughing about it.

"Are those the bandits that people fear?" Luffy said, laughing while wiping away a tear. "And you went all serious on them with three-sword style. Maaaaaan, you should have only used one sword instead of three!"

"Shut up, I love using three-sword." Zoro said irritatedly.

As they were walking, Zoro happed to look up and shouted, "Watch out!" He jumped to the left while Luffy jumped to the right. An arrow hit the ground where they had been standing.


	2. chapter 2

chapter 2

"Who did this?" Luffy looked around for the person who had shot the arrow at them.

"I don't know, but stay alert till we find his whereabouts." Zoro drew two of his swords.

"Hahahahaha!" They heard someone laughing. They looked up and saw a man with black, curly hair and a long nose standing on a tree branch above them.

"Stop right there you bandits!" The long nosed man commanded, pointing his finger at them.

"This village is protected by 800 men! And leading them is me! Usopp! The Great Warrior of East!" Usopp said, raising his head while staring down at them intimidatingly.

While Usopp was talking, they heard the bushes around them moving.

"Whaaat?!" Luffy said, shocked.

Zoro looked around carefully, still in a fighting stance, then lowered his swords. "He is lying."

"So he tricked us. What a liar."

Oh crap! They found out! But I gotta stay calm. Usopp thought, then said, "Who did you call a liar?! I'm the Brave Warrior of the East! Usopp! And I really do have 800 men under my command!" Just then, the bushes around them moved some more.

"I would say that there are three to five men there." Zoro said.

"They found out about us!" One of the bushes whispered.

"Yeah! Let's run before they kill us!" The other said.

"Yeah! I agree!" The third said. Then all three of them ran away

"So are you gonna shoot at us or not?" Luffy asked, his hat shadowing his eyes. Zoro smirked and stood in his fighting stance again.

Usopp's legs were shaking and his hands were shaking too. He could barely hold his bow, and when his arrow fell from his hand to the ground, Usopp just kept looking at them and shaking before he let himself fall to the ground.

"Hahahahaha! This guy is so funny!" Luffy said while laughing. Zoro put his swords back and smiled.

"Please don't hurt me!" Usopp pleaded.

"Heheheh! Don't worry! We won't hurt you!" Luffy said, walking towards him.

"Calm down buddy, we are not bandits, we are just travelers."

"Really?" Usopp stood.

"Then it's good that I, Usopp, The Great Warrior, didn't do anything bad to you!" Usopp put a hand to his heart and shouted to the sky, trying to seem impressive.

"Hahahahahaha! I like this guy! I'm Luffy!"

"I'm The Great Warrior, Usopp!"

"Shut the 'great warrior' crap already." Zoro said annoyed.

"Oh yeah, sorry, I'm Usopp!"

"I'm Zoro." Zoro said disinterested.

Mountains: Bandits Hiding Place

"Hihihihihihi! Give me more wine, men!" A man with a big red nose yelled.

"Yes sir, Buggy!" One of his men said, pouring some wine to his cup. Suddenly three of his men entered, covered in bruises and cuts.

"What the hell is this?!" Buggy roared. "Who did this to you?!"

"Some travelers." One of the men said, hardly able to speak.

"What?! And where did these guys go?" Buggy asked.

"Syrup Village." One of them said before fainting.

"I'll avenge you and kill those assholes!" Buggy vowed.

In a restaurant in Syrup Village, three men are sitting around a table.

"So you guys are going to the capital?" Usopp said.

"Yeah!" Luffy was already eating his third dish. "We are going to join the king's army if we find it interesting."

"Yeah. But if they treat us like regular soldiers then we won't join them." Zoro said.

"Are you guys really that strong?" Usopp asked amazed.

"Yeah we are!" Luffy said around his food.

"So where can we find someone who can give us a couple of horses?" Zoro asked.

"If you are looking for horses, then you better go to the mansion that's on the hill and ask the Lady." Usopp answered before suddenly standing as if he just remembered something important. "Sorry, guys. I gotta go." Usopp rushed out of the restaurant.

"Hey, wait you didn't finish your talk!" Luffy yelled after him but it was too late, he was already gone.

"That asshole, why would he just run off without finishing?" Zoro said, pissed off.

At the entrance three kids were staring at them. Then one after another they jumped inside and rushed towards them, brandishing their wooden swords, but stopped before reaching them. "W-where is Usopp?! W-what have you done to him?!" One of them said with a voice full of fear, shaking.

"Did you kill him and throw his body to wild animals?" Another said with the same fearful voice.

"Yeah, it's the second one. But instead of killing him we threw him to the wild animals still alive." Zoro said with a devilish smirk.

The three kids fell back to the ground, fear and sadness on their faces.

"W-We won't forgive you for what you did to Usopp, you bandits!" The third said, almost in tears. Zoro and Luffy started laughing, their heads thrown backwards by the force of their laughter.

"Relax, it's just a joke. He is fine, and we are not bandits. We are just travelers." Luffy said, looking down on the kids on the ground.

"Yeah, he was telling us about the Lady that lives on the hill then suddenly stood and ran out of here." Zoro said.

The kids stood, relaxing a bit when one of them said, "So he has gone to see Lady Kaya again. The other two hummed and nodded in agreement.

"So who is this 'Kaya'?" Zoro asked.

"She is the Lady that lives in the mansion on the hill. After her parents died she got sick and couldn't leave the mansion. So Usopp goes there every day to tell her stories and to keep her entertained." One of the kids explained.

"She sounds like a really good person. Can you take us there?" Luffy asked.

"Yeah, sure!"

At the mansion

Usopp was sitting on a large tree branch talking to a young blonde girl with pale skin who seemed to be sick. "So Kaya, the other day some bandits appeared on the other side of the village and I defeated them all by myself! I told them to never return here ever again!" Usopp said puffing his chest out proudly.

"Really? Then I'm happy that you are here to save us all the time, Great Warrior Usopp!" Kaya said smiling.

"Th-thanks." Usopp scratched his nose shyly.

"Hey! You! What are you doing coming here again?" A servant shouted up at the boy in the tree.

"Oh, crap! They found me!" Usopp stood up on the tree branch, ready to run.

"It's no use talking to him, Merry. He is a kid with no parents and no pride, wandering around telling lies." Another servant said.

"Oh no, Usopp…" Kaya said Usopp jumped from the tree and punched the servant in his face, just as Luffy and Zoro arrived.

"Kuro!" Kaya called to the servant in concern.

"So these are your true colors, you garbage." Kuro said. Usopp was shaking with anger. He wanted to hit him again but stopped when he heard Kaya's voice.

"Wait! Usopp, please leave." Kaya said, lowering her head.

"Hey Usopp, where did you run off to? We were looking for you." Luffy asked. Usopp looked up at Kaya then ran off without even noticing Luffy and Zoro. Kaya watched him go, crying to herself, her cry of "Usopp" just a soft whisper.

"Wait…so he won't help us get horses?" Luffy asked.

Zoro hit him on the head "It's not the time for that, idiot."

Kuro turned to them. "I will have to ask you to leave, sir. We don't allow strangers in here."

"Let's go, Luffy." Zoro said.

They turned and walked out.

"Telling us to leave after we jumped over the wall and came all the way here. How rude!" Luffy pouted.

"Yeah, I get you, buddy." Zoro said, his hands behind his head.

Back at the restaurant, Zoro and Luffy are sitting at the same table again with Luffy starting another round of eating.

"Zoro, where do you think Usopp ran off to?" Luffy asked, stuffing his mouth full of food.

"How would I know?" Zoro said, not really interested.

Suddenly a lion entered the restaurant with a man close behind him. "Wait, Richie." The man called the lion, but the lion didn't listen to him and continued to advance. People jumped from their seats, knocking them over, and rand to the other end of the restaurant since the lion was blocking the exit. Zoro and Luffy stayed in their chairs, Luffy was still eating when they turned their heads and saw the lion approaching them.

"Hey Zoro, look! It's a lion!" Luffy's eyes were glowing with excitement.

"Yeah, yeah, I see him." Zoro replied.

"Hey, Richie...who are you guys?" The man behind the lion asked, seeing that the two men were unafraid.

"Shouldn't you tell us who you are before asking for our names?" asked Zoro.

"Oh, right. I'm Mohji and this is my pet, Richie. And now I'll have to ask you to stand up and leave your food to my pet." The lion advanced towards them, drooling while staring at the food.

"If I were you I would stay away from his food." Zoro warned, watching the lion nearing Luffy's food. The lion neared the plate and was about to eat the delicious meat when Luffy's expression changed. He clenched his fist and punched the lion, throwing him out of the restaurant through the door.

"That's what you get for trying to eat my meat." Luffy growled.

"How dare you attack my pet?!" Mohji said and tried to hit Luffy with his whip, but Luffy caught the whip and pulled. With the whip still around his hand, Mohji flew towards Luffy who then punched him with his other hand, throwing him out through the door just like his pet.

Hearing some noise outside, Luffy and Zoro went out to see who it was, but only after Luffy had finished his remaining food in one go.

A few minutes before the lion incident

Some men appeared at the north side of the village. "So is this the Syrup Village?" Buggy asked.

"Yes, sir, Buggy. This is it."

"Well, let's hope those travelers are still there. Hihihihihihihihihi!" Buggy laughed devilishly.

Buggy and his men entered the village and started terrorizing the villagers; breaking things and stealing their precious possesssions.

"Where are the travelers?" Buggy asked a woman.

"Please spare us! We know nothing!" The woman pleaded while embracing her son.

"Please don't hurt us, Mr. Big Nose!" The little kid cried.

"Who are you calling 'big nose', you little-!" Buggy raised his sword to kill them but stopped when he heard a crashing sound. He turned to see Richie flying out of a nearby restaurant.

"What the-?" He didn't finish his question before he saw Mohji fly out and land near Richie.

Buggy's eyes widened. "Who the hell did this?! Come out, you little piece of shit!"

Zoro and Luffy came out of the restaurant, they glanced around and saw a man standing before them, glaring at them and really pissed off.

"Were you the ones who did this to Mohji and Richie?" Buggy asked.

"Hey Zoro, do you know this big nose guy?" Luffy asked.

"Nah, never saw someone with such a big nose before." Zoro replied.

"How dare you insult me and call me 'big nose' to my face?!" Buggy said, irritated.

"And I'll take that as a 'yes' to my first question. Get them, men! Kill those bastards!" Buggy ordered and his men charged them.

On the other side of the village, Usopp was sitting on a tree branch with his head down and a sad expression on his face, thinking about what had happened at the mansion with kaya. He heard the commotion coming from the village. He stood and looked towards the village. He saw the chaos in the village.

The bandits are attacking the village!

"Oh no…Kaya!" Usopp jumped to the ground and rushed to the mansion, taking a detour around the village.

In the mansion

Merry ran towards Kaya's room but stopped when he saw Kuro. "Kuro! The bandits are attacking the village! We should protect Lady Kaya!" Merry said and tried to run toward Kaya's room, but as he past Kuro, he was stabbed. "Ku-Kuro..?" Merry said, coughing out blood. "What is the meaning of this?"

"Finally. I can take advantage of this chaos and get what I really wanted all along." Kuro pulled his sword out of Merry and let him fall to the floor.

"La-Lady Kaya…I'm sorry…" Merry fainted.

Kuro turned and walked towards Kaya's room.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

What Kuro didn't know was that Kaya saw everything.

Kaya was sitting on her bed, thinking about what had happened earlier with Usopp. Why did you do that? Kaya thought to herself. Kuro is a good person. He was just trying to protect me, but you had to hit him ...why…why, Usopp? Why?!Kaya was screaming in her head.

Then she heard Merry's sound and went to look at what was happening when she opened the door just enough to see them. She saw Kuro stabbing Merry. Her eyes widened, she covered her mouth with in horror and closed the door, falling backwards to the floor. Tears coming down her checks she whispered, "Oh,no, Merry…" She heard footsteps as Kuro neared the door.

Suddenly the sound of his steps stopped. The door knob turned and the door opened slowly. She stared up at him with teary eyes from the floor. 

"Well, well, what do we have here?" Kuro said, smiling. "If you stay on the floor like that your condition will worsen and you will die, you know."

"I s-saw everything. You killed Merry…" Kaya said in a shaky voice.

"Well, since you saw everything, I'll get right to the point. I want you to write your will and give all your wealth to me."

"But why would you do that? Just to get my wealth? If you asked I would have given it to you!" Kaya said.

"If I did that, the people would know that I'm a bad person, they'd never accept me. But if you die now, and leave all your wealth to me, no one will suspect me. They'll think you were killed by the bandits and left all your wealth to your loyal, lovely servant." Kuro stepped closer and raised his sword to strike her down but an arrow pierced his shoulder. He rushed behind the door to avoid being hit by another.

"Don't you dare touch a hair on Kaya, you filthy pig!" A voice came from outside the room. Kaya turned and saw Usopp standing on the tree branch outside.  
"Usopp!" Kaya called, tears falling down her cheeks.

"If it isn't the worthless liar." Kuro said, still hiding behind the door. "Now I can kill both of you together! Hahahahahaha!"

"Well, we'll see who is gonna die at the end!" Usopp kept his bow pointed at the door Kuro was using as cover. "Kaya, come over here!"

"Okay!" Kaya stood and started walking towards the window where Usopp was standing. When she arrived at the window Usopp told her to jump to the tree branch even though Usopp knew she was sick and weak, but he couldn't help her. If he were to lower his bow, Kuro might attack them.

"No matter how far you go, I'll find you and the kill you!" Kuro shouted.

Usopp looked at Kaya and saw that she was struggling to jump to the tree branch. Looking at the door, and not seeing Kuro, Usopp took a chance and lowered his bow to help Kaya get to the tree. Lifting her up bridal style and jumping down, Usopp ran outside the mansion and knowing that the village was under attack by the bandits he went towards the forest.

When Kuro heard them jump from the tree, he left his hiding place and followed after them.

In the village, Luffy and Zoro were fighting the bandits. Almost all the bandits were down when suddenly someone attacked Zoro from above with two swords. Zoro blocked his attack. "And who you might you be?" Zoro asked.

"I'm Cabaji, one of the commanders in Buggy's bandit group." Cabaji said.

"Finally someone worth my time." Zoro grinned, putting one sword in his mouth then drawing the others, one in each hand.

"Cabaji! Kill those two for standing in my way!" Buggy ordered.

"With pleasure!" Cabaji attacked Zoro, jumping high and striking at Zoro. Zoro blocked his attack but then Cabaji kept hitting him rapidly. Zoro blocked all of his attacks, pushing the other swordsman back.

"Is this all you have got? I'm disappointed." Zoro said.

"Don't get a head of yourself, you bastard!" Cabaji cursed and attacked again, but this time Zoro avoided him entirely and attacked Cabaji instead. Zoro cut through his defense and slashed Cabaji's chest. Cabaji coughed blood and fell without a struggle.

"Cabaji! You bastard! How dare you kill my men?!" Buggy shouted, heading towards Zoro. But Luffy landed a hit on Buggy, throwing him back.

"I'm your opponent, big nose."

Buggy looked back to see that his remaining men were all already beaten up. "Y-you assholes! I'll kill both of you!" Buggy's face was red with anger.

Buggy attacked Luffy, swinging his sword towards Luffy's head. He avoided the swing since Luffy was fighting with his bare hands. Buggy swung his sword again but Luffy avoided it again and punched the bandit leader in the guts.

"You bastard!" Buggy attacked him again, but this time Luffy took his attack head on. Buggy tried to strike down with his sword, but Luffy caught his wrist with one hand and punched him in the face with the other. The force of the punch threw Buggy back to crash against the wall of a house and then pass out.

"Buggy!" Some of his men who had just woken up called.

"Oh no! The boss and the two commanders are down!"

"Who are these guys?"

"Hey you!" Luffy called out to the men.

"Y-yes?" One man answered.

Luffy pointed to Buggy and other two. "Take those and leave, and don't you dare come back here ever again!"

"Yes, sir!" The remaining men chorused, fleeing the village with their fallen leaders in tow.

Meanwhile in the woods, Usopp was still running from Kuro with Kaya in his arms. Usopp was breathing heavily from all the running and was barely standing when someone struck him down from the right.

They fell down groaning from the pain. Usopp was hurting the most since he took the impact of falling down.

"Usopp!"

"You okay, Kaya?" Usopp asked.

"Yes." Kaya answered.

"Well, well. I see that you are still in one piece." Kuro stepped towards them. "I'm impressed that you avoided a fatal injury."

"Yeah! But you still got my arm, you bastard!" Usopp held his probably sprained wrist to his chest. "And how did you catch up to us?"

"You should have left her and run for your life. You know you can't run from me if this sick girl is with you." Kuro got close enough to raise his sword and strike them down.

"You bastard!" Usopp cursed helplessly.

Before Kuro's sword hit Usopp, a rock hit Kuro and then more rocks hit him when Kuro covered his face. Usopp used the distraction to shoot an arrow through Kuro's chest, despite the pain in his wrist.

"Usopp!" Three kids called, coming out of the woods. "Lady Kaya, Usopp, you okay?!"

"So it was you guys! Thanks! You really saved us there." Usopp said. 

"Yeah, you sure did. Thanks." Kaya said.

"No need to thank us; it was nothing!"

"What happened to the bandits in the village?" Usopp asked.

"We don't know. When we saw them we went to inform Lady Kaya, but we saw Kuro chasing after you guys so we came to help." One of the kids said.

"We gotta hurry to the village!" Usopp said. The kids helped Usopp and Kaya to their feet and started making their way to the village.

In the village, when people saw the bandits run away, they come out and cheered for Luffy andd Zoro. Then Usopp and his companions showed up.

"Hey guys. What happened here? Where are the bandits? "Usopp asked.

"Oh, hey Usopp! We kicked their asses!" Luffy said.

"And what happened to your arm?" Zoro pointed at Usopp's injured arm.

"Ah, this is nothing. It's just a scratch."

"I wanna thank you for protecting our village." Kaya said. "So if there is anything you want, don't hesitate to ask."

"Then if you could give us two horses." Zoro said.

"And a lot of meat!" Luffy added.

"Yeah, sure!" Kaya replied. "Then I'll go ask someone to get them ready for you."

"Umm, Kaya, can you give me a horse too?" Usopp asked.

"Yeah, I knew you were going to ask that." Kaya said "I know it's time for you to go and live your life the way you want to."

"Thanks. I'll be back when I'm a great warrior!" Usopp said. "And it's not like I'm not one now, heheheh!"

They all laughed at that then Kaya left to get the horses with the help of the kids. After a while, the kids came back with the horses. Luffy, Zoro, and Usopp said their goodbyes and left for the capital.

The next day, they arrived at the capital Raftil at the East Gate.

"Wow! It's so big and crowded." Usopp stated.

"Yeah." Zoro replied, walking behind him.

"I'm hungry, we really need to eat something. It's lunch time!" Luffy said, looking down from the hunger.

"Yeah, me too." Usopp said.

"Then let's look for a restaurant to eat at." Zoro suggested.

Suddenly, Luffy raised his head and sniffed the air. He turned his head around then said, "Found one!" before storming off in the direction of the smell.

"Wait! Luffy!" Usopp called, running after him. Zoro muttered a quiet "idiots "and followed after them.

Elsewhere in the capital, two girls were walking around.

"Princess Nami, we should go back to the castle before someone recognizes you."

"Robin, how many times have I told you to call me Nami? And if you keep calling me 'princess' then people will definitely know who I am." Nami said.

"Sorry, Princess."

"Robin…" Nami turned to face Robin. The other girl stopped and looked at her. "I won't move until you call me Nami." Nami said.

"B-but, Princess!"

"I'm still waiting…" Nami said.

Robin looked her in the eyes and saw how determined she was on this and sighed. "Y-yes Nami."

"That's better! Now let's go eat something, I'm hungry." Nami said happily.

Robin chuckled. "Yes, sure, why not?"

Nami turned around, looking for a restaurant. "Let's see…" She tapped her chin as she thought. "That one. That 'Baratie' restaurant looks good." Nami pointed it out and Robin agreed, nodding her head. They walked toward the restaurant and upon arriving they found one empty table beside the window and decided to sit there since it was the only table available.

"This is a good table. I wonder why no one was sitting here." Nami wondered aloud.

"I think I know the reason." Robin pointed to the table behind Nami. Nami turned her head and saw the three men sitting there. One of them was eating like a pig, stuffing his face with both hands and stealing food from the other two. The others were fighting back to protect their food.

"How uncivilized." Nami said, turning to Robin.

"I find them amusing." Robin said, chuckling.

"Are you serious?!" Nami asked in disgust.

"This food is delicious!" Luffy said, still eating.

"Yeah, I bet my food taste delicious, you asshole!" Usopp said angrily.

"If your hand comes this way, I'll cut it off." Zoro threatened.

"Ahahahahaha! Oh come on! I'm just helping you finish your food!"

"Thanks, but we can finish our own food!" Usopp said.

"Idiot." Zoro said.

Then a guy with blonde hair came with some more food. "Here's your order." He put the plate on the table.

Luffy's eyes sparkled seeing more food on the table. He said a quick "thanks" and started digging in.

When the blonde guy saw this, he got angry. "Eat properly or I'll put some table manners in your skull!"

"What do you care?" Zoro didn't like the way this guy was talking to his friend, and besides that, he didn't really like the guy from the first moment he saw him.

The blonde guy looked down at him. It looked like the feeling was mutual. "My restaurant, my rules."

Zoro didn't say anything, 'til finally, "Wanna fight, curly brows?"

The blonde guy heard him. "Bring it on, moss head."

Zoro stood up, drawing his swords. The blonde guy raised one of his legs, getting ready for the fight. Suddenly the heard a female voice behind them wondering, "I wonder when they are going to come take our orders? I'm hungry."

The blonde guy turned and saw two beautiful girls sitting at the table behind him and immediately his eyes turned into hearts. "Mellorine!" He completely ignored Zoro in favor of the two pretty girls.

Zoro got irritated and called out, "Hey, curly brows! Come back here!" But the blonde guy ignored him again.

Reaching the girls' side he bowed a little, his hand on his chest. "Please forgive me for not noticing you earlier, my ladies. As an apology, the food is on me, Sanji, the cook."

Nami's eyes turned in to belli signs at the thought of a free meal. "Really? Then bring me the most delicious food here!"

"Fufufu, then I want the same as her." Robin said.

"Right away, my ladies." Sanji said, stepping back slowly before turning and leaving for the kitchen.

"You didn't have to accept his offer, you know. It's not like we don't have any money." Robin said.

"I know, but it's just that I couldn't refuse free food. But why did you order, then?" Nami asked with a smirk.

"It's just that I couldn't refuse the most delicious food, you know." Robin replied. They both laughed.

"Yeah, I get you." Nami said between breathes.

Then a man came up to them. "Hello ladies. Why don't you come join us?" He pointed to a table full of men.

The girls looked on in disgust. "No thanks, we're okay." Nami said.

"We like to eat alone." Robin added.

The man smirked. "Hohohoho! But it's not a request that you can reject, you know." He said, grabbing Nami's wrist.

"Let go you filthy pig!" Nami shouted, trying to free her hand. But the man tightened his grip which made Nami stand up to try and ease the pressure.

"Nami!" Robin cried, standing up as well.

Nami grabbed a glass that was on the table with her other hand and tried to hit the man on the head. But he caught the glass and yanked it away.

"Heheheheheh! Not bad! I like you more already." He threw the glass away and it ended up hitting a table which caused more plates to fall and break as well. Nami was groaning in pain. Then someone grabbed the other man's hand and twisted. The man screamed and let go of Nami's hand.


	4. chapter 4

Chapter 4

"Who are you?" The man asked. "Wanna die, you bastard?"

Nami looked at the guy who helped her. It was the same noisy guy with the straw hat from before and he looked very pissed.

Why is he so angry?

"Do you know who we are? We are part of Don Krieg's gang." The man said.

Luffy raised his hand and punched the guy in the guts, throwing him across the restaurant.

"How dare you do that!" Luffy said, annoyed.

Nami could do nothing but stare at him and wonder 'who is this guy?'

His friends stood and gathered around Luffy.

"Hey, Luffy do you need any help?" Zoro asked.

"Oh, no thanks." Luffy answered.

"Okay, but if you need any help, tell me cuz I'm The Great Usopp." Usopp said, shaking.

At that moment, five men attacked Luffy at once. Luffy dodged the first punch and retaliated by punching the guy in the face. He kicked another one away while one of them jumped on him from behind but Luffy simply head butted the man, giving him a bloody nose. Then the man let go of him and slid to the ground, unconscious like the others. Only two remained.

"May I ask what's happening here? " They all stopped to look at Sanji. Nami was about to tell him that those men had been bothering her when the straw hatted man came to help her. But, no~, Luffy had something else to say.

"Those bastards ruined my food and it's all dirty now!" Luffy loudly complained. Sanji looked around and saw his food on the ground. The cook stared coldly down at the remaining thugs. "Get out of here, you filthy pigs." He knocked the thugs out with a swift kick to their heads before they could respond. "Oi! Somebody get out here and throw these assholes out!"

"Yes!" Some men come out of the kitchen, carrying the unconscious gangsters out of the restaurant and dumping them on the street. Sanji turned back to Luffy, but before saying anything his, eyes landed on Nami.

"Oh, my sweet angel! I'm sorry if that scared you." Sanji said, twirling towards Nami.

Nami, however, was still shocked about what her other 'protector' had said. Was that all because of the food? And here she had thought he was being pretty cool.

"Mellorine, I hope you are unhurt." Nami was still deep in thought, but Sanji asked again unperturbed. "Mellorine, are you okay?"

That time Nami was brought back from her train of thought. "Y-yeah. I'm fine, thanks."

Sanji turned to Robin, twirling as he did so. "And how are you, my angel? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine as well, thank you for asking."

"I'm sorry about what happened. Your food will be ready in no time, ladies." Sanji apologized.

"Hey, curly-brows, shouldn't you be apologizing to us instead?" Zoro gestured to the food on the floor. Sanji turned and looked at him, a faint look of disgust on his face from being distracted from the girls. "We received most of the damage here." Zoro continued.

"Yeah, it's only fair that you apologize to us. Or gave us some free food." Usopp added.

"Excuse me ladies, I will be right back." Sanji excused himself then moved toward Luffy's group. "Why should I apologize to you when you are the ones who started this mess in the first place?" Sanji pointed out.

"They ruined our meal first, then we paid them back for that." Luffy pointed out as if it were the simplest thing in the world.

Sanji pulled out a cigarette and lit, unimpressed. "Still, this is no place for fighting; this is a restaurant."

"Excuse me." Nami spoke up and they all turned to her. "Sanji, was it?"

"Yes, my lady." Sanji seemed to perk up at being spoken to directly, turning away from Luffy and the others completely.

"All of this happened because of us, so if possible, would you forget about what happened? Please?" Nami wanted to help them, even though the straw hat had done it only for the sake of his food, still, she was safe now thanks to them.

"And we will be happy to pay for all of your food." Robin added with a smile.

"Really?!" Luffy shouted in excitement.

"Yeah, sure, eat as much as you want." Nami replied, also with a smile.

"Then I want more meat! Meat! Meat! Meat!" Luffy shouted.

"Yeah, me too." Usopp said.

"And don't forget to bring lots of drinks, too." Zoro added.

Sanji looked at the guys in disgust but he could say nothing since the girls were defending them. "If that's what you wish, my ladies." Sanji said then went back to the kitchen.

"May I ask for your names?" Robin asked.

"Shouldn't you introduce yourself before asking for our names? "Zoro retorted.

She chuckled. "Fair enough. My name is Robin, Nico Robin."

"And I'm Nami."

"Name's Zoro, Roronoa Zoro."

"And you can call me The Great Warrior Usopp!" Usopp shouted to the sky which made Zoro hit him on the head with a muttered 'idiot'.

Luffy was laughing at him then said, "Oh, and I'm Luffy. Nice to meet ya."

"It's a pleasure to meet all of you too." Robin said while Nami just nodded with a smile.

Then some men came and cleaned the floor bringing out the new food as they did. The girls' orders were ready as well, so they were brought out too.

"Sorry for being late, my ladies, here is your food." Sanji said while putting the last plate on their table. they both thanked him and started eating.

As for the others: Zoro was drinking and Luffy was digging into his food like a pig and stealing from Usopp's plate who was too busy defending his food from Luffy to remember to chew. Sanji didn't even spare them a glance before returning to the kitchen again.

It was peaceful for a while until someone kicked the door open, a large man entered the restaurant with his underlings flanked behind him. All the customers jumped at the sudden arrival and stared at the newcomer. Upon seeing the who stood at the door, they stopped moving entirely.

"Greetings, my friends. I hope all of you are having a great day." The huge man said, his deep chuckle grating from his chest.

"It's all thanks to you, Officer Arlong." One of the customers said.

"Damn right!" Arlong's laugh burst past his sharp teeth. His eyes sparkled with malicious glee as the customers nearest him startled backwards at the sudden volume.

Arlong's eyes landed on a table in the middle of the restaurant, the men who were sitting there quickly stood and left. Arlong and his men sat in their places and ordered some food.

"Bring us all the good food you have! Quickly!" Kuroobi, one of Arlong's men ordered. The nearest waitstaff jumped and stammered a quick 'yes, sir!' before escaping to the kitchens.

Luffy and his gang continued eating as usual whereas Nami and Robin subtly averted their faces cautiously to not be sighted.

"Don't look their way Nami. If they somehow recognize you, you'll be in serious trouble." Robin muttered under her breath.

"Yeah, I understand." Nami replied, just as quietly.

She knew that it would be bad if some soldiers caught sight of her outside the castle. Her secret would be revealed, and she wouldn't be able to come out ever again.

The waiter returned with their food and set it on the table "Here is your food, sir."

"Is our money ready yet?" Kuroobi asked the waiter.

"Our chef is preparing it for you now, sir." The waiter answered.

"Good. 'Cause if you don't pay us we'll have to destroy this place! Heheheheh!" Kuroobi stated.

"Y-yes sir. I will convey your message." The waiter answered.

"Okay, you can go now." Kuroobi ordered with a flick of his wrist, eyes only for the food in front of him. As they were eating, Arlong was distracted by the three men fighting over food loudly and eating in an uncivilized way. He watched them with disgust.

"Throw those pigs out Choo, I can't eat like this." Arlong gestured at one of his men.

"Yes, sir." Choo answered then he stood up and went towards the trio. Usopp, Luffy, and Zoro, unaware of the approaching danger, continued their fight over the food.

"Don't steal my food, Luffy! Eat yours first!" Usopp shouted.

"But if I eat mine it will be gone quickly!" Luffy said, eating a piece of meat that he had stolen from Usopp.

"So why are you only eating my food?! Zoro's food is on the table too!" Usopp said angrily.

"If you touch my food I will cut off your hand." Zoro said coldly, calmly sipping his drink. Usopp and Luffy looked at him, frightened.

"See? He is heartless he will kill me if I do!" Luffy told Usopp while taking another piece of his food and stuffing it in his mouth, unfortunately it was still too hot, and he shot fire from his mouth.

"Hahahaha! That's what you get for eating my food!"

The entire restaurant watched Arlong's man walk up to the oblivious trio in tense fear. When Choo banged his hand on their table, only the three men in question were surprised at being interrupted.

"Now that I got your attention, I'll ask you to get out of here, nice and easy like." Choo asked them nicely, which was to say, with an undercurrent of intimidation.

"And why would a soldier 'ask' us to leave? Did we do something wrong?" Zoro asked.

"You see Officer Arlong there?" Choo pointed at the big man on the table in the middle of the restaurant, "He finds you guys annoying, so if you leave he'll be able to eat more peacefully." Choo explained slowly, as if too small children.

"If he can't eat here, then he can go somewhere else to eat peacefully." Luffy replied guilelessly, still stuffing his face.

"Yeah! We came here first, so he can go somewhere else to eat peacefully!" Usopp repeated, spurred on by his friend's nonchalance. Choo was quickly becoming more pissed off the longer the three men continued to ignore his 'suggestion'. The rest of the patrons started muttering fearfully to each other.

"W-what are those guys doing!? Don't they know who Officer Arlong is?"

"Are those guys gonna fight them just like they did with the thugs from earlier?"

Choo drew his sword and pointed it at them. "I asked nicely, and you didn't listen, but I'll give you guys one more chance to leave before you die."

"Can I cut him?" Zoro asked Luffy, completely ignoring the other man's threat.

"Nah, just knock him out. We don't wanna be outlaws, we're here to join them."

At such blatant disregard, Choo saw red. "Why you little..!" He raised his sword, ready to strike, when Zoro stood and drew his sword at the same time. He blocked the attack and pushed back hard, forcing Choo to fall on his back. Arlong and his men were shocked only for a moment before they all stood at once, incensed at what they saw. Sensing another fight, the remaining bystanders wasted no time in rushing out of the restaurant.

"Here they go again." Nami said, annoyed.

"Fufufu, they are really something else, aren't they?" Robin said, amazed that only a few people had stayed in the restaurant even as they cleared the middle of the room for the two groups, so they won't get involved in their fight.

"D-Damn you!" Choo cursed and stood.

"I will kill all of you bastards!" He got ready to attack again but stopped when Arlong called him.

"Wait, Choo." Arlong stepped forward, the others behind him.

"B-but Arlong, sir..." Choo tried to complain, wanting to finish them off himself but Arlong stopped him again.

"What is it, Choo? Are you disobeying me?" Arlong said, looking the man down coldly.

"N-No, sir." Choo replied, frightened. He took a step back to be in line with the others.

Arlong turned toward the trio. "I wanna ask you guys a question before I kill you." He took a step forward. "Just who are you guys to attack a soldier, especially in the capital city Raftel of all places?"

It was silent as Arlong stood there waiting for their answer. One of his men grew impatient and shouted, "Answer Arlong's question you damn brats!"

Luffy shoved the last piece of meat in his mouth and drank some water before he stood up. All eyes were on him. "Let me ask you a question. How come a jerk like you, whose citizens are scared to death of him, is a soldier?" Luffy asked with a calm but stern voice. Zoro stood by, sword in hand, waiting to see how the conversation ended.

"You ask me who am I and why those good for nothing people are afraid of me?" Arlong pointed at himself, bemused. "I'm Sergeant Major Arlong. I have the authority to do whatever I want in this area. I keep them under control and they fear me and pay me for my services." He then pointed at the people in the restaurant, "Those who disobey me will be imprisoned and tortured by me personally! Dahahahaha!" Arlong said, laughing.

Robin and Nami where surprised to hear such a thing. "We never receive reports stating that our soldiers terrorize our own people…" Robin wondered aloud, stunned.

"Yeah. I will talk to my father about this when we get back to the castle." Nami reassured her. She knew that she couldn't do anything in this situation, and if she revealed who she was she would be in trouble, so she just stood there and watched the show.

"You're a disgrace." Luffy said in a low voice.

"What did you just say, brat?" Arlong asked, eyes narrowed in anger.

"You're a disgrace to all the soldiers who are on the frontlines risking their lives to bring peace and joy to the people of this kingdom. You're bullying those same people they're trying to protect." Luffy said in a loud voice.

"Don't compare me to those idiots who fight and get themselves killed for the sake of this kingdom. I only fight for myself and money. And I have every right to do what I want!" Arlong shouted back in response.

Those still in the restaurant looked on in fear. Arlong wasn't the only officer to terrorize and rob the citizens they were meant to protect. They had been living with that reality for years and had every reason to fear Arlong's power. That was just the way the world worked, and who were they to change things?

Nami and Robin could only watch and do nothing. Was it really that bad? They had never heard anything like this. They had thought that the soldiers were among the people to maintain order and protect them when needed. But what they heard and saw was completely different from what they had been told.

"If all our soldiers are like you then how are we supposed to unite the two kingdoms

and make it one piece again? How will we save our brothers who are suffering in the other kingdom at the hands of the World Nobles?" Luffy shouted back, his audience enthralled by his words.

"Dhahahahaha!" Arlong laughed hard, head thrown back and mouth wide. "One Piece? Our brothers? I haven't heard shit like this for a while! Not since the time of general Gold Roger who was so strong and powerful that he almost conquered the whole Grandline kingdom. But we all saw what happened to him: he was captured and executed. How pathetic! Dhahahaha!" Arlong's laughter overcame him again, his underlings joining in.

Luffy ground his teeth at the insult. "Pathetic. A piece of shit like you doesn't have any right to talk about him like that!" Luffy said and ran towards, fist raised. "Here I come!" Zoro and Usopp went after him.

"This is the way real men talk! With their fists!" Zoro said, smirking.

"Y-yeah, but, talking it out isn't a b-bad way either…" Usopp said in a shaky voice.

"Kill those bastards!" Arlong shouted, rushing forward to meet the oncoming attack. His men roared in response, taking up the sides. Zoro and Usopp met the group of men and left Arlong and Luffy to fight each other alone.

Neither of them used a weapon, simply using their fists to pummel the other into submission. Luffy had the upper hand and managed to land a few solid hits to the officer. Despite this, Arlong was a tough opponent and it took all of Luffy's concentration to keep the blows coming. Kuroobi noticed his leader taking damage and took the opportunity to attack Luffy from behind, Zoro and Usopp too preoccupied with the other soldiers to help. Before Kuroobi could do anything, though, he was thrown back by a sudden kick to the stomach.

Luffy didn't take his eyes off of Arlong yet didn't seem surprised by the commotion from behind him. "Thanks, Sanji, for protecting my back." Luffy blocked another one of Arlong's attacks without missing a beat.

"No need. I never liked those bastards to begin with." Sanji replied, lighting a cigarette and seemingly unaffected by the chaos around him.

"You asshole! I will make you regret this!" Kuroobi cursed and rushed back at the chef.

As the fight wore on, Arlong and his men started to fall back, overwhelmed by the three fighters. Seeing his soldiers being outdone by a couple of nobodies, Arlong decided it was time to fight dirty. He signaled to one of his men behind his back. One of his men placed a sword in Arlong's hand, body turned to shield the movement. Arlong smirked and struck out with his fist only for Luffy to block the attack easily. Arlong's smirk stretched into a grin of triumph. The other man wouldn't be expecting a weapon and wouldn't be able to adjust in time to protect himself.

However, Nami saw what Arlong was hiding behind his back and shouted, "Luffy! Watch out! He has a sword in his other hand!"

"Too late!" Arlong crowed as he had already swung his sword toward Luffy. Luffy lowered his hand to stop his sword.

"Say goodbye to that hand, brat! Dhahahaha!" Arlong laughed, but then he noticed that he couldn't move his hand any more. "W-what the hell?!" He looked down and saw that Luffy had stopped his sword with his bare hand, but the strange thing was, his hand was covered in some kind of black substance. "W-what the hell…is that Haki?" Arlong was shocked. How could someone this young use haki? Just who the hell was this guy?

Luffy grinned. "Now it's my turn."

His other hand turned black as well and then punched Arlong in the face, throwing him all the way across the restaurant. By that time, the others had already dealt with their opponents. Anyone still standing around were astonished by their power. They felt joy but, at the same time, they were scared. They knew that their problems wouldn't just disappear until someone from the castle took care of all the corrupted officers in the capital.

"D-don't you think that we should go before more soldiers come?" Usopp said, picking up his bag.

"And where do you suggest we go? Outside the kingdom? They're just gonna come after us no matter where we go." Zoro stated, putting his swords back in their sheaths.

"We're not going anywhere. We stay here and see what happens." Luffy decided and went to sit on a still standing chair. "If we run now we will be considered outlaws and will never be able to join the army."

Sanji stepped forward, a cigarette stub still dangling from his lips. "But what good would it do if they put you in prison?"

"Don't know. We'll wait and see, I guess. Besides, it would be nice to spend the night in prison since we don't have any more money left."

Luffy said with an easy grin. Zoro went and sat on a chair near Luffy's. "Not a bad idea."

Usopp rushed up to them in a panic. "What are you guys?! Idiots? They may even kill us for what we did!"

"Maybe, and maybe not." Luffy said, completely unconcerned.

A voice come from outside, calling for them to come out. "I'm Lieutenant Morgan of the Capital Soldiers. I know you criminals are inside. I demand that you come out with your hands behind your backs or we won't go easy on you!" They could see that Lt. Morgan had an impressive line of soldiers ranged behind him, all to arrest Luffy and his gang.

"It seems they are here at last." Luffy said with a grin then stood up from his chair to go out. Zoro stood up next.

"I guess there's no way out of this, huh?" He moved to stand next to Luffy.

"W-wait, are we really gonna do this? Isn't there anything else we can do?" Usopp asked, trying to find another way out.

"If you are scared then you can stay inside. We three will be enough." Sanji said, replacing the spent cigarette with a new one.

"You bastard! You think I, Usopp, The Great Warrior, will abandon my friends...w-wait you are coming too?"

"Of course. I took part of it too." Sanji said.

"Wait you guys! If all the people here testify for you they may forgive you. You were just defending yourselves and besides, they were taking money from these people forcefully!" Nami said, trying to stop them.

Zoro looked over his shoulder at her. "If it was this easy those people would've done it long ago."

"Yeah, those bastards are all in it together." Luffy said without turning back. "Let's go, guys." He stepped outside, the others close behind him, to meet the mass of soldiers waiting for them.

"Are you the ones that fought Sergeant Major Arlong?"

"Yes, we are." Luffy answered bluntly.

"Then I must ask you to come with us with no resistance." Morgan said then gestured for his men to arrest them. The soldiers jumped to obey and soon Luffy and the others would find themselves prisoners of the Capital.

Nami and Robin watched them go with heavy hearts. On their way to the royal palace, they couldn't stop themselves from questioning what had been happening without their knowledge. "I can't believe this! How come we don't hear this kind of stuff in the palace? Aren't they supposed to give us reports about this?" Nami said angrily.

"I guess there are a lot of people taking part of this; even some officials must be involved and that's why we don't get any reports about them." Robin reasoned, her chin resting on her hand, deep in thought.

"I don't care who's in on it! I will make all of them pay for doing this to our people! Come on! I wanna talk to my father about this." Nami said, stomping off towards the castle, Robin following dutifully after her.

"As you wish, Princess Nami."

"Commander Marco, you may enter the Counsel Hall now." A man announced from the hall's doors.

"Finally. Those old geezers sure took their sweet time." Marco muttered to himself, brushing past the man as he entered.

Upon entering, he was met with a group of five people sitting around a raised semicircle of a table. The whole setup was kind of intimidating, but Marco ignored it. "Greetings to you. I see that you are all looking well, despite your ages." Marco said, looking each one of them in the eye.

"Watch your tongue, brat. You are in the presence of the Five Counselors." One of them said angrily.

"Hahahaha! As expected of one of Whitebeard's commanders." Another one said.

"Shut up, Garp. That's not something to be complimented for." Sengoku retorted angrily again.

"How is Whitebeard doing? I hope he is well and healthy." The third man asked with a smile.

"He is doing well. Thanks for asking Counselor Rayleigh." Marco answered with his own smile.

"Now, now. That's not what we are here for. Right, Shaky-chan?" Yet another one asked.

"You're right, Counselor Tsuru." Shaky answered.

"Okay. Now speak your mind. What brings you here?" Sengoku asked.

Marco's expression changed to one of a warrior, as signs of friendliness wiped from his face. "My Lord Whitebeard has sent me to warn you of a possible attack on the eastern border. He says that there has been some suspicious activity on the enemy's side and we suspect their target is the biggest city in the eastern region, one of the four pillars that holds our very kingdom's fate. The city of Alabasta."


End file.
